Images showing villagers going through tests in order to attain their Unique Identification (UID) cards at Merta district in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan. In a more ambitious version of programmes that have slashed poverty in Brazil and Mexico, the Indian government has begun to use the UID database, known as Aadhaar, to make direct cash transfers to the poor, in
an attempt to cut out frauds who siphon billions of dollars from welfare schemes.

If successful, the initiative could also bring modern banking to the doorstep of rural India, a goal towards which progress has
so far been fitful despite mandatory targets set by the government and Reserve Bank of India. "Nearly 80 farmers in the village have taken crop loans. They have more confidence in banks now," says Dangi, who earns 1,500 rupees ($30) a month plus commissions. "They now know banks are not cheats to swallow up their money."